KINGSTON, N.Y. -- City lawmakers have put off making a decision on whether to opt into a tax break program for developers.

Alderman Thomas Hoffay, D-Ward 2, who is chairman of the Common Council's Finance/Economic Development Committee, said the panel needed a higher "comfort level" with the facts of the program to make a recommendation on it.

If the city were to opt into the program, developers who invest in large-scale projects would be given an assessment reductions on improvements made to vacant buildings over a 12-year period.

City Assessor Daniel Baker has said that the program could provide an incentive to redevelop the former Kingston Hospital building on Broadway as a mixed-use site after it's closed by HealthAlliance of the Hudson Valley, which operates the facility.

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To be eligible for a tax break under the program, a developer must invest at least $1 million in a property. In turn, the developer would receive a 100 percent assessment reduction on the improvements for the city tax portion for the first eight years, Baker said.

The assessment reduction would be 80 percent in the ninth year, 60 percent in the 10th year, 40 percent in the 11th year and 20 percent in the 12th year. After that, Baker said, a developer would pay taxes based on the full assessment.

Baker said the reduced assessment would be only for the city portion of a tax bill, not county or school taxes.

Hoffay has said the proposal, which is supported by Mayor Shayne Gallo, needs a "thorough" examination by his committee.